MORE Caucus Bronx Back to School Party

If you teach in the Bronx or upper Manhattan, or just anywhere in the city, comes to the......

MORE BACK TO SCHOOL PARTY IN THE BRONX FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25th FROM 4-7 PM

Yes, it is true. Celebrate going back to work in style. Come and meet MORE, check it out, meet new friends, and learn a thing or two on how to make yourself part of the bigger plan. 

For those who are unaware, MORE and another caucus, New Action, have joined forces to run a slate to oust the current union leadership. Only by working together can we make a difference.

The Back to School party will be held at the Mott Haven Bar and Grill at 1 Bruckner Blvd in the Bronx, right at the foot of the Third Ave Bridge. 

Getting there is easy. The Bx15 stops just a block away and the 3rd Ave-138st on the 6 train is a short walk. Or if you are driving just get off the Deegan at Willis Ave. 

This will be a great meeting where the most important person coming is you.

UFT Solidarity Seems Unable to Get a Story Straight

What a week it has been. The decision to run a joint slate between MORE and New Action has surely caused an impact from celebrations throughout the galaxy to those who remain in denial.

For those still in denial we here at SBSB recommend that the 5 stages of grief be looked into. Anger will come next, and then bargaining (Some say bargaining has been non-stop) and then depression and then acceptance.

The Crack Team came into some interesting writing from UFT Solidarity over the weekend that are curious. The Crack Team's  journalism intern Zippy the Brain Damaged Chimp© was given the task of responding to the writings. As per the somewhat usual method, the responses will be within the body of the email in red. 


As we speak, there is a meeting taking place in NYC now Ooooh. Ominous words. Must be a conspiracy brewing. Another UFT group GUESS WHO???  is nominating their own UFT presidential candidate to run against me Yes, it is always about you, you, you, you, you!! and UFT Solidarity the Shlimazel Caucus. And of course bringing up the rear those who are not allowed to be named nor shown on campaign posters. In fact why are they mentioned?. This despite many repeated attempts by us to work together When these attempts are made practically every day when do they stop being attempts and being annoyances and/or OCD?  to overthrow A vote it not an overthrow Mike Mulgrew and friends Aren't Mulgrew and Friends on Nick Jr?. As they have stated, this group is not interested in winning top positions, but rather a few high school seats in the UFT Executive Board Not a few, but all. Same with middle school exec board. Those are quite winnable. MORE won a plurality of HS exec board seats in 2013 Seats we offered for them to have We did not know that here at SBSB how can that offer be refused? By the way, thank you, thank you!. We even offered top slate positions Except the presidency. Why is that? Would not someone who felt secure and grounded with themselves not be worried in a free and fair process of selecting the president. However, ego EGO? Mr Pot meet Mr Kettle. When one has already decreed that one has already one and is going to Staples (Tsk, tsk) to check out office furniture, has priced sashes, has practiced speeches dressed as UFT president in the mirror, been unable to accept criticism, and has probably inquired on how to get a replica Oval Office desk how is it ego on the part of MORE? Wouldn't it just be darn good smarts and good taste? Dang, again with the PROJECTING! got in the way and now the membership's nose is being cut to spite it's face No, someone is just upset about not getting their way. A sad day for UFT members everywhere No. What can we do, but continue to push forward Go for it. If we have to, we will beat all of them Beat? Why is this taken so personal? and bring hope and representation It would have had more (pardon the pun) resonance if UFT Solidarity was bringing balance back to the Force back to the UFT. We have no other choice Who cares. The students, staff and parents depend on this Yes, but not on UFT Solidarity the Shlimazel Caucus . The school system here in NYC depends on us winning ROTFLOAO!.

And then from the ICE List Serv....

Dear UFT brothers and sisters,  

 We had been informed of this coalition for some time now . We didn't say or do anything to stop it, because we want it to happen Yeah sure. Heck, if you remember I have been pushing for a New Action MORE for years There is a difference and besides no one at MORE was angling for a seat on exec board. http://daffyduck.org/from-the-frustration-chaos-a-new-uft-group-emerges

This is better for the membership Yeah it is, much, much, much, much better, and bad for Unity. As is the number of Unity members cutting ties and joining us 100 is a big number? Oh, what about the Captain Picard guy?. 

We, UFT Solidarity, will continue to push forward And go around in circles. We will continue to represent and support. How your groups respond to our upcoming initiatives and actions is up to you This statement is confusing. No one really cares. How all our campaigns run will depend on all of us. 

 Enjoy your weekend and good luck tomorrow. Blah, blah, blah, blah. 

No one here  or anywhere can keep up with all the spin.

MORE and New Action Working Together

If you haven't yet heard, a big announcement came forth over the land of NYC today. MORE and New Action are joining forces and running a joint slate in the 2016 UFT elections(Click 
on more link to find out more details).

The Crack Team wholeheartedly endorses this conjoining if two UFT powerhouse caucuses and believes that a major dent will be dealt in the upcoming election.

What we like most about this agreement is that this is not predicated in anyone personality, that there will be no domination of a caucus by another, that decisions will be made jointly and for the betterment of all involved.

What pleases us most here at SBSB is the way that this union came together. Everything was on the table, adults meeting as adults, no childish games, no begging, and more important, no desperation.

But enough of what we feel, more importantly, what does teacher community have to say about this famed union?

Let's see....

 Sadly, there are just some that are not happy about this melding of the minds and have thrown a tantrum. 

Maybe the baby needs to put a fork in it already and accept reality. This is a good deal for teachers. 

Fools Are Not Dangerous, Just Sad

If you consistently read this blog you know I have been forthcoming in addressing the charges that were brought against me in my 3020a. I might not have addressed the charges as expeditiously as some have wished, but there are other things to write about and besides, it takes a lot out of me emotionally to write about the charges.

When I have written about the charges and the hearing (here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here here, and here) I have always been candid and forthcoming. I have not hid from anything and have taken responsibility for my actions.

Sadly, there are others who have thrust themselves upon a mountain top and look down from their noses on the same people in the same situations and anoint themselves the arbiter of sharing one's 3020-a and stories.

I do I jump for anyone.

Too think intimidation after what I had been through is going to work is quite illogical.

No one has the right to play God, to play Judge, or just to decide what morals or rules someone else must follow. We have enough of that in this country with the Republican Party.

I am far, far from perfect and there are plenty of things I wish I had done differently during that 2012-13 school year. But I do know the truth. I do know what happened. What gives someone the right to take out of context my 3020a through speculation and supposition what I did when in fact that person requests, yet demands of every living being on planet Earth must believe that person's story without question?

One thing I do pride myself on is my moral compass. It might be a bit askew at times, I might come off too cocky at times, too temperamental, too opinionated, but I do whatever I can to live by that compass.

I hate to bring up another Rush reference, but from the song "Faithless"on 2007's "Snakes and Arrows" CD the first paragraph drives home a point.

I've got my own moral compass to steer by 
A guiding star beats a spirit in the sky 
And all the preaching voices - Empty vessels ring so loud 
As they move among the crowd 
Fools and thieves are well disguised..... 

I take pride in whenever I was taken into a colleague's confidence whatever I was told stayed with me. I would not, even if that teacher pissed me off or threw me under the bus, violated that confidence. Nor, would I do something to embarrass that teacher.

In the time I spent in the Rubber Room the last two years I heard the usual stories, (Like in Shawshank Redepmtion...("Everyone's innocent in here") but it was not my place to judge. My place only was to support in any way I can. I did not push an agenda on anyone. I gave them their options and they decided what is best for them.

I would never try to get back or hurt a colleague by using their family against them or using unfounded third party rumors. No matter what, that person was my colleague. That person, if worse came to worse, would be ignored. Only those that have serious self-esteem issues, those that have to make themselves bigger than they are commit such acts.
 I am proud that I have not once used, nor will I ever, on these pages comments of my principal's family. Even the families of others I find despicable will never be used on these pages.

Fighting dirty is not being a man and not being an adult and in no way gives one any cred in "sticking up for what is right." It just makes one look like a petty little 7 year old on the playground during recess that runs home to mommy's teat when the going gets rough.

If anyone wants to know anything about what happened in my 3020s or my charges my email account is right in there on the right. Email and ask me. Or email and I'll give you my number or we can meet. I have no problem discussing anything. But no one has the right to shame me or to demand me into sharing when or how I want to share.

I've got my own spirit level for balance
To tell if my choice is leaning up or down
And all the shouting voices
Try to throw me off my course
Some by sermon, some by force
Fools and thieves are dangerous

Trying to prove Freud wrong is an uphill battle. Freud was right.

Could Donald Trump Be UFT President?

Did I have a dream or did the dream have me?--Peart, Neil (2003)

I awoke in a cold sweat this first morning of Rosh Hashanah. I had dreamt that Donald Trump not only had decided to give up his quest to be President of the United States and run instead for UFT president, but thankfully had lost resoundingly.

As I lie in groggy in bed praying to YHWH that it was nothing but a dream I thought to myself, "What qualifications does The Trumpster have to be UFT president, let alone run in the election?"

Before heading off to Shul I met with The Crack Team for our annual Rosh Hashanah breakfast over bagels and lox and we put our collective minds together. We could not think of one qualification that Trump had to be UFT president.

Thankfully The Crack Team intern Zippy the Brain Damaged Chimp was able to list several dis-qualifications that would enable Trump to at the very least run and which would be his downfall in losing.

Zippy has given us permission to list his ideas on this blog but since we had no bananas to give him, we promised Zippy full copyright rights over his list.

Zippy The Brain Damaged Chimp's List of Donald Trump's "Dis-Qualifications" to Run and then Lose in the UFT Election©

1. Trump is a narcissist.

2. Trump can only attack others instead of debating the facts.

3. Trump embellishes his accomplishments.

4. Trump belittles everyone who contradicts him.

5. Trump sues anyone and everyone who peels back the veneer of what he himself has built up in his mind.

6. Trump makes empty promises.

7. Trump exaggerates his support.

8. Trump is a cult of personality.

9. Trump has pissed off the very people that he should be cooperating with.

10. Trump is a bully.

11. Trump's favorite Beatles song, "I, Me, Mine."

12. Trump is a fraud.

13. Trump sinks to the level of the lowest common denominator.

14. Trump lies.

15. Trump can't take responsibility for his screw ups.

16. Trump bogarts other people's stuff.

17. Trump believes he is an agent of change.

18. Trump has tantrums when he doesn't get his way.

The Crack Team, on behalf of Zippy, ask that if you do use any of this list that you please attribute it to Zippy and not The Crack Team. This will help us in the future on paying Zippy and it will also boost his confidence.

On behalf of Zippy, thank you.

Principal Namita Dwarka F***s Up Again!

I have this little OCD habit which I believe I have mentioned in the past. If I awaken in the middle of the night I reach for my phone and check the news. I did this morning at 5 AM and boy did I get a surprise.

No, not that Namita Dwarka, principal of William Cullen Bryant High School is in the news again, but that this time as reported by the New York Post, she apparently was covering up sexual malfeasance. Apparently her AP, Pelagia Papoutsis, was involved in sexual tryst with a female student.

As the Post reported that the DOE is;

"...investigating allegations that a female assistant principal slept with a girl student while the principal kept it quiet."

And...

"...the former math teacher and Bryant HS alumna was promoted to assistant principal last school year, and considered a powerful member of Principal Namita Dwarka’s inner circle. But she is now under a cloud for allegedly engaging in a romantic relationship with one of her former students."

Sickening.

Has Chaz the Blogger asked today;

"Here we go again....You just need just to look at the many issues associated with the Principal.  Here, Here, Here, and Here."

Who do we have to thank for this getting in the Post? None other that Bryant High School phys ed. teacher Peter Maliarakis (Check out his Facebook pages here and here.) who has blown the whistle ever since he was reassigned in June for alleging;

"....filthy conditions in the basement area adjacent to a bathroom that caused such a stench “students put shirts over their noses,”

For this he was hit up with 12 charges of incompetence and insubordination.

Two takeaways here.

One, Peter is a whistle blower for the noblest of reasons. This is not about him, his quest for revenge, it is about the students. Peter has a young child and one on the way. Putting his neck out there like this in his situation shows that he is not doing this to advance anything other than what is right for the students. What is right for the school. And what is right for the community. Doing what he has done and being in the situation he is in surely is not easy. I too have blown the whistle and like Peter my reasons were for the safety of the students.

The other takeaway is how does Dwarka keep her job (Seriously, we know how she keep her job, she is a administrator with the DOE)? Face it, she is a fuck up. If any teacher covered up sexual malfeasence he or she would be arrested immediately, suspended without pay, and have an expedited 3020-a hearing. If Dwarka even gets removed and Rubberized it will be at least 4 years before some resolution happens.

Same with her AP. In fact I was chatting with Peter on FB today and jokingly told him that Papoutsis will probably be promoted to a nice cushy position when this is all said and done. Same to with Dwarka.

But the worse part is this crap was happening when Bloomberg, Klein, and Walcott were in charge and where is the outrage that will follow this week when Farina and de Blasio are castigated by the press (Farina should be crucified by the press and then resign!).

Apparently the DOE seems not to care about the students and the community and only wishes to keep itself in power just like some two bit Central American military junta.

Individuals and the communities need to keep up the pressure, not just with the DOE but with he media as well.

And what of the false idols claiming their writing of  letters and emails to the principals and superintendents shall worry them and/or keep them on their toes?  The false idols are nothing more than just paper clowns (THIS IS OPINION! DEAL WITH IT!).

Welcome to White Plains!

We are going to go off the beaten track here today and instead talk about one of New York State's most underrated vacation spots, White Plains, NY (Disclaimer: This is not a paid blog post).

Why White Plains? Why not? White Plains central located in, and is the county seat of, Westchester County. White Plains is 10 square miles and has a population of 57,866, but a daytime population of 250,000. For those history buffs, White Plains was where the Declaration of Independence was read for the first time in New York State. The Battle of White Plains in the Revolutionary War was also fought here along the banks of the Bronx River near the Metro-North train station in the area known as Battle Hill.

But you ask, "How can I get to White Plains?"

White Plains is served directly by the Bronx River Parkway and Interstate 287 better known at the Cross Westchester Expressway. The BRP let's you off in downtown while 287 loops around downtown but you will be close enough.

If you don't have a car you can take Metro-North to the fabulous and modern White Plains station. There you will find plenty of taxi's and right across the street is the White Plains transcenter where one can catch the Bee-Line buses for trips through White Plains. There fare is only $2.75 and you can pay in cash or Metro-Card!

If you don't want to take the train you can fly into Westchester County Airport which is just a few miles north of the city. There is no scheduled direct flights from the three major NYC airports, but if you are self-important enough you can get a private plane from Teterboro to fly you there.

"Where can I stay?"

White Plains has many hotels to stay at. The Crowne Plaza where I stayed on my wedding night. Residence Inn, the new and exciting Cambria Suites, and of course the Ritz Carlton. All these hotels are within walking distance of downtown.

But what if you are on a budget? Or not really important enough to stay at these hotels? Then the Central Motel Court on Central Ave right near the Greenburgh border is the place for you. Not only do they have day rates, but rates by the hour. Don't worry, the Bee Line 20 bus stops right in front and will get you into downtown in 5 minutes.

"Where can I dine?"

White Plains has become a restaurant haven, especially along Mamaroneck Ave. Too numerous to list here but just follow this link. But most of these restaurants only take the really important. For those less important we recommend the snack bar at Target, Five Guys, Kennedy Fried Chicken on Post Rd, and my favorite place, Tu Pais Deli on the corner of Fisher Ave and Bank St. I worked there in the late 80's under former ownership and it was a different name. Tell them The Crack Team sent you and get a cup of joe on the house!

"Where Can I Shop?"

White Plains is a shopping haven. There is The Westchester Mall which is for the really truly self important, the Galleria, Mamaroneck Ave, The City Center, and of course Wal-Mart,where we know we can't go. Also don't forget The Source. And lest we forget, Bloomingdale's. Bloomies just doesn't allow anyone to shop there, I should know. I worked there 30 years ago.

"Where can I be entertained?"

There is the Westchester County Center, home of the NBA D-League Westchester Knicks, and the movies at the City Center. And many of the restaurants and pubs along Mamaroneck Ave have live music.

"What touristy things are there to do?"

The Jacob Purdy House, Elijah Miller House, White Plains Armory, Percy Grainger Home and Studio, and the the Bar Building are some of the fun things you can do. Make sure you have your cameras ready!!

"What happens if suddenly I go mental and start believing I am the Second Coming, or that I am the Queen of England, or Mussolini, just plain paranoid, or just off my meds?"

You are in luck! New York Hospital, Westchester Division runs one of the leading mental health care hospitals in the country in White Plains. Offered up is in patient and out patient facilities and a place where the psychiatrists work with you to find the right meds for you. All insurance is taken!

Enjoy your stay in White Plains!!